Target DVD and Blu-ray section with single-kiosk display option (Media Play News staff photo).
PwC: Packaged Media Revenue to Decline 55% Through 2026
June 22, 2022
Consumer migration from packaged media movies to digital distribution continues, with new data from consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) projecting that the U.S. home entertainment retail market will generate about $1.1 billion in revenue from the sales of DVD, Blu-ray Disc and 4K UHD Blu-ray titles in 2026 — down almost 55% (or 17.5% annually) from revenue of $2.5 billion in 2022.
Sales of digital movies and TV shows will increase half of 1% annually to $6.3 billion in 2026 from $5.6 billion this year. That includes $576 million from pay-TV operators and $5.7 billion from digital platforms, including Vudu, iTunes, Microsoft Movies, and Redbox Digital, among others.
Digital rentals will remain flat at $1.7 billion, with $621 million originating from pay-TV operators and more than $1 billion from digital platforms.
Meanwhile, the U.S. subscription streaming video market will continue to flourish, as revenue grows exponentially. PwC contends the SVOD market will grow 8.5% annually to $33.6 billion in 2026, up from $25.3 billion in 2022.